At this point, just pick the damn Jaguars already. They want to do it. The show will be awesome no matter which team is on it, because it's an inherently awesome concept. Part of the fun is discovering characters you never knew existed, and it's impossible to spend a training camp with scores of professional athletes and not make a few stars. And for the NFL's why wouldn't you want to instantly turn the Jaguars into a team with national recognition? If the Jags end up getting Hard Knocks by default, it's a win-win for everyone.

Advertisement

According to an HBO exec, one problem has been the absence of NFL Films czar Steve Sabol, who's in failing health. Whatever Sabol wants from the NFL, he usually gets, but now there's no one to strong-arm teams into doing something they might not be 100 percent onboard with. HBO shouldn't be worried: if it comes to it, the big man Goodell himself will outright tell a team "You're doing this show." This is the NFL's baby, after all. Make no mistake, Hard Knocks is NFL propaganda produced, filmed and edited by NFL employees. HBO only provides the branding and real estate.

Then there's this, from the same Post report:

Deadspin, the popular sports Web site, even speculated this week that the show may not air this year for lack of cooperation.

Nah, we never actually said anything like that. But here's hoping the rest of your article is true!